Historic district guidelines take shape

Sonya Padgett

Wednesday, July 28, 1999 | 11:07 a.m.

In an effort to preserve Las Vegas' rich past, city officials are completing written guidelines that will set design and development standards for the Las Vegas High School Historical District.

The area -- bounded by Lewis and Gass avenues, from Sixth to Ninth streets -- was designated a historical district by the state earlier this year, city planner Marc Castagnola said Tuesday during a Planning Commission workshop.

Unique houses -- originally built in the 1930s -- reflect the architectural style of early Las Vegas throughout the neighborhood. Many of those homes where the city's influential and wealthy once lived, Castagnola said, are now used as office space for businesses.

Development guidelines are needed to ensure that the city doesn't lose its past to future development, Castagnola said.

"The primary goal (of setting standards) is to retain the residential historical character of the district," he said.

The district is comprised of three main styles of houses: Mission, Tudor and California Bungalow, Castagnola said. New additions to the neighborhood will have to meet certain architectural standards in order to blend into existing structures.

"We don't want (new construction) to copy existing houses," Castagnola said, but officials do want to have a more uniform district.

For example under the guideline, multiple lots can't be used to build one large structure, Castagnola said. A developer who owns two lots can build one building, but three lots would require two separate structures.

While the guidelines may help retain an important part of the city's past, present and future needs -- such as parking -- also have to be taken into consideration, Planning Commissioner Marilyn Moran said.

"I think if you're going to keep the look of the neighborhood" parking concerns have to be addressed up front, Moran said.

The guidelines will require that all parking be behind a house or office, Castagnola said.

But that may not provide enough space for people who want to see the historical neighborhood. Moran would like to see specific plans to provide parking for visitors to the district.

"I think you need to look at that before you let everybody build. It'll run everybody off," Moran said.

Castagnola said such concerns will be handled later on in the process of adopting the guidelines.

The development guidelines will go before the city's Historical Preservation Committee for an official public hearing, possibly Aug. 25, Castagnola said.